$45m allocated for improvement work at Alley Bridge

The Government is to spend $45 million in the upcoming fiscal year to carry out short-term improvement work on the approach to the Alley Bridge in Clarendon.

The new fiscal year begins on April 1.

The Alley Bridge has been a source of bitter complaints for residents.

One resident, in a 2023 letter to The Gleaner, raised concerns about the “dark and dungeon-like conditions” at both ends of the bridge.

“I must say, this is a disaster waiting to happen, as both ends of the bridge have no light and pose great danger to pedestrians and motorists alike,” the resident stated, in a letter to the editor.

Robert Morgan, minister with responsibility for works, said the short-term improvement works “should be between now and six months thereabouts.”

He made the disclosure while responding to questions from Clarendon South Western Member of Parliament Lothan Cousins during a meeting of parliament’s Standing Finance Committee on Thursday.

Morgan disclosed, too, that a “detailed engineering estimate” of the bridge and the approach to it is also required.

He said the National Works Agency (NWA) was asked to do an assessment of the cost of repairing the bridge.

“Our preliminary cost to fix the problem is gonna be $1.3 billion because the bridge is in such a low-lying area,” Morgan said, while acknowledging that it is an important corridor in southern Clarendon.

However, he said resolving the issues will not happen in the upcoming financial year.

- Livern Barrett

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